Our Instructors
Hi! My name’s Hannah and this is my fourth year working at Putney Summer Arts as a Dorm Head! I love films/TV shows, video games, and books- feel free to come have a chat with me about those or give me some recommendations as well! I’m excited to be working at Putney again and I can’t wait to see y’all on campus.
Anghard Davies is an award-winning dancer, choreographer, and teacher. Her choreography for dance, theater, and opera has been presented by Artspace New Haven, Danspace Project (NYC); ODC (San Francisco), Radialsystem (Berlin); Walker Art Center and Mixed Blood Theater (MPLS); and Yale Repertory Theatre, among other venues.
As a performer, she has worked with companies and choreographers across the U.S., Europe, and Asia, including Ivy Baldwin Dance, Drastic Action, Gibney Dance, Hanna Hegenscheidt, SuperGroup, and Chris Yon. She has been on faculty at the University of Minnesota, the Lincoln Center Institute, Berlin’s Staatlicheballettschule, and the Saint Paul Conservatory for Performing Artists, a public performing arts high school in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Additionally, she has been a guest artist, teaching master classes internationally at many universities and arts institutions, such as Yale, Princeton, Sasha Waltz & Guests, K3 Zentrum für Choreografie in Hamburg, Germany, and Yorkshire Dance Centre in Leeds, England. Angharad’s current teaching includes faculty appointments at Choate Rosemary Hall in Wallingford, CT, the Educational Center for the Arts in New Haven, CT, and Naugatuck Valley Community College in Waterbury, CT.
She holds a B.A. with Honors in English from The George Washington University and an MFA in Dance, from NYU.
Website
Kenter Davies is a vocal arranger, music educator, and choral facilitator based in Brooklyn, New York. He dedicates his work to creating spaces where people can engage with music without the pressure of perfection, but full of complexity and joy. He highlights the journey over the destination and firmly believes in making music for music-making’s sake. Kenter facilitates One Day Choirs and other music events with the NYC-based creative community, Gaia Music Collective. One of his greatest loves is leading others in song and having fun doing it! Another one of his passions is the art of cooking—ever since he was a young child he has loved to make food and share it with others. He has a mostly vegan/plant-based approach and is thrilled to bring that perspective to Putney’s culinary workshop this summer! This is his third summer teaching at Putney after being a student way back in 2012 and his excitement for this program never fades!
Hi I’m Sid, I grew up in New York City and have recently completed my Bachelors in Fine Art at Kingston University. My work focuses on photography, digital collage, painting, drawing, and printmaking. In my free time I also enjoy playing guitar, creative writing, watching films, and going bouldering. After attending Putney Summer Arts as a teenager as well as being a Dorm Head last year, I’m looking forward to returning once again this summer!
Hilary is an art jeweler living in West Dummerston, Vermont with her family. She feels honored and thrilled to teach, share her knowledge, skills and passion of metalsmithing with her students. Her art and metalwork is marked by a love of materials, reflecting an arsenal of traditional techniques, love of problem-solving, and a belief in beautiful craftsmanship. When not in the studio Hilary can be found hanging out with her chickens or working in the garden.
Hi, I’m Uma! I recently graduated from Tufts University with a B.A. in Architectural and Environmental Studies, and a minor in studio art. My work varies across media focusing on printmaking, painting, and sculpture. I attended the Putney Summer Arts Program as a teenager and am very excited to be back in such a creative community!
Hi I’m Ellie! I’ve always loved to create and experiment in all different artistic mediums, and studied at Parsons school of design with a focus on video and installation arts. I’m super interested in the future of regenerative agricultural design, and I am very excited to be at the Putney School where the arts and ecology overlap.
Fantasy Illustrator with 12+ years of experience as a freelance commercial illustrator. I’ve worked for different projects, including characters, environments, items, and complex illustrations for tabletop games, video games, and book covers. Such as Wizards of The Coast, Creative Assembly, Paizo Publishing, Tor and others.
I’m also a volunteer firefighter and an EMT student.
Portfolio
Wes’ lifelong passion for the visual arts began during their time as a student in the Putney Summer Arts Program. During their four years at Putney, Wes focused on printmaking, metal jewelry crafting, and painting.They continued drawing, oil painting, and mixed media printmaking as hobbies during their college years. In their free time, you can find Wes experimenting with different types of paint and drawing materials to relax and unwind.
Sam is a long-time camp counselor about to start his Masters in Teaching of English at Teachers College of Columbia, so Putney Summer Arts was a pretty easy sell. When he’s not doing English Teacher things, Sam loves teaching yoga, playing Dungeons & Dragons, strumming campfire tunes on the guitar, and sometimes just watching the sunlight dance on fluttering leaves.
I am so excited to continue to share my passion for the craft of theatre with students from all around the country and am delighted to be spending the summer in Putney!
I have completed my 15th year of teaching Drama and Musical Theatre at Ransom Everglades School, and am the Co-Founder of the REMS House System, building curriculum to further the social-emotional growth of students and to build campus camaraderie. Each year, I direct and choreograph a production where students can take their arts education beyond the classroom. I believe in learning through play and creativity while building a strong ensemble in a safe, joyful space. I graduated from New World School of the Arts High School, received my Bachelor of Music in Musical Theatre from the conservatory program at the University of Miami’s Frost School of Music, and my Master of Arts also from UM. Prior to RE, I worked with the National Foundation for the Advancement of Arts’ YoungArts program identifying exceptional young talent. I continue to perform professionally as a member of Actors Equity Association. Some of my favorites include: Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, La Cage Aux Folles, Side by Side by Sondheim, August: Osage County, Anna en el Tropico (in Spanish) and the world premiere of I Love You Because. I am also a voice-over actor having lent my voice to a number of projects from and for all over the world in multiple languages for clients such as HBO, Telemundo, Univision, Nickelodeon, and Netflix. In my free time I enjoy reading, paddle boarding, snorkeling, and traveling. I share this very full life with my partner of 20 years, Jorge, and my three incredible children, Joaquín, Belén, and Inés.
Lizzy Griffin just graduated from Oberlin College with a double major in Dance and Psychology, a minor in Spanish, and a concentration in Education. She is beyond excited to be returning to Putney for her second year, she loves the incredible community and beautiful space that Putney creates! She is passionate about the arts, specifically dance, loves being outside and exploring the world around her, and is at her core a lover of learning and collaborating with others.
Jon Hubbard is a metal artist and teacher living in West Dummerston, Vermont. Growing up in upstate New York Jon’s love of the outdoors, and art gave him the opportunity to travel and live out west for the past 20 years. His artwork is a reflection of nature and his travels. During the school year Jon teaches a variety of art classes at here the Putney School. And when he is not in the studio he can be found riding his mountain bike, hiking through the woods, or restoring a vintage bicycle.
Eric Johanni is a rockstar dad to two kick-awesome kids, a better than average rock climber, a nomad of a traveler, and an all-around creative ninja. When he’s not doing the above, he can be found educating the students at Arcadia High School and Phoenix College.
Ultimately, Eric is a collage artist that draws a vast skill set which includes, but is not limited to, sewing, printing, photography, drawing, wood working, digital design, assemblage, deconstruction, and repurposing. At the heart of his work he explores people’s connection to textiles and the impact that fabric has on our mood, memories, and relationships.
Eric has taught drawing, printmaking, photo and fashion design for the Putney Summer Programs. He gladly trades the Arizona heat for any chance to be in Vermont in summer.
Hello, my name is Cooper Johnson and I will be teaching the animation workshop this summer. I specialize in 2D digital animation, which I first started learn as a putney student(class of 2019). I went on to hone those skills at Savannah College of Art and Design(class of 2023).
Besides animation, my interests include making pizza, ultimate frisbee, learning unique animal facts, and playing DnD. I am excited to be returning to putney this summer and looking forward to working with the next generation of putney animators.
Website
Maya is excited to return for her second year as a dorm head at Putney! She recently graduated from the University of Vermont, where she majored in environmental studies with a minor in plant biology and a certificate in place-based education. During her time at UVM, she served as the managing designer Headwaters Magazine, the university’s student led environmental publication, contributing art and writing and managing a team of artists for semesterly editions. Previously at Putney, she has led an evening workshop on botanical press and sketch, exploring the botany from an artistic lens. Maya is a lover of cooking, contra dancing, crocheting, taking bike rides, and going for field walks. She looks forward re-immersing herself in the community at Putney!
Hello, I’m Colton, a composer and audiovisual artist. I have an MA in Music: Audiovisual Cultures from Goldsmiths University (London), where I worked on a large body of work called ‘Audiovisual Techniques for Scoring Home Movies’. For this project, I revisited old home videos from the 1990s and 2000s, transforming their contexts by sampling and composing music for them.
I’m also the co-founder of a small production company called SparkBoom Productions, which creates experimental film, artist moving image, documentary, and fictional worlds. We play with the storytelling power of audiovisual mediums to move their audience.
My practice is exploring the relationship between the audio and visual arts, asking questions like, “what role does sound play in an increasingly visual society?” I’m ever interested in the production and performance of noise, sound, and music. And I love the woods.
My relationship with Putney began in Summer 2022, when I was a Dorm Head for Summer Arts. It became an enchanting home that I later yearned for. There is lots of magic here, especially within the trees 🙂 I’m delighted to return!
Website
Hi! I’m Ros (he/they) and I recently graduated Oberlin where I majored in Studio Art and Comparative American Studies. In my practice as an artist I explore the relationship between nature, construction, and body, mainly through print and wood. I love cooking, printmaking, and being outside. I’m excited to return to Putney as a dorm head after attending the Summer Arts Program as a teenager!
Ben is a painter and teacher who lives in Lancaster, PA where he teaches at the Pennsylvania College of Art and Design. He has taught painting at the Putney Summer Programs for the past three years. When he’s not painting he’s often exploring art museums or playing piano.
I’m August Mellowship, a 2020 Putney Graduate with a 16 year tenure as a faculty kid. My biggest passion is art and I spend the majority of my free time pursuing new ideas. I also enjoy crochet, sculpting, and miniature painting. With an art school background I take pride in my ability to provide constructive feedback and critique for the work of my fellow artists.
Hi, I’m Bella (she/her). I studied film at UCL, and continue to live in East London where I work in film production on a very wide range of projects, from tiny shorts, to music videos, to larger TV shows. In my spare time I love to cook, read, be outdoors as much as I can, and desperately try to earn the love of the seven foxes that live around my back yard. I’m so excited to spend some time in Vermont this summer and welcome a new challenge!
Fiona Morehouse has been facilitating integrative arts and ecology programming for over 20 years. She collaborates on interdisciplinary workshops across the US and abroad and currently splits her time between art making and teaching at MASS MoCA, a contemporary art museum in North Adams, MA.
She has exhibited internationally and has several permanent public art installations across the United States. She received her BFA from McDaniel College and is currently working toward a MFA in Arts and Humanities at the Royal College of Art in London while also completing a Museum Studies Graduate Certificate from Harvard University.
Fiona uses clay as a medium to explore the embodiment of polarities within herself and the world around her. From abstract sculptural forms to figurative and functional pieces, her work is rooted in deep ecology and serves as a remembering of our human earth connection. When she is not in the studio, she can be found conversing with water or in the forest talking to trees.
Hi everyone! My name is Audrey Morrissey(shey/they) and I am super excited to be back at Putney this summer! I was a camper in the past and loved it so much I decided to come back as a Dorm Head this summer. I have a varied background in both dance and the fine arts. I have been dancing for about 7 years now and am a big fan of modern and house dance styles. I am also very artistically inclined and have a range of experience in different mediums from a traditional classroom setting to being self taught. Most recently I have been exploring throwing on the wheel, drawing more from life, and printmaking. When I am not dancing or making art I usually find myself outside. I have experience in and love backpacking, camping, rock climbing, gardening, and hiking.
Printmaking, for me, starts with drawing. Drawing starts with life: sketching from the observed world we travel in and through, from the people we see and watch, in the daily life that happens all around us the moment we walk out the door. My work deals with human emotion and its echoes in the built environment. MA Drawing: The Drawing Year, Royal Drawing School, MA Printmaking: Camberwell College of Art at the University of the Arts London. I have lived abroad, traveled and taught. VT and NH are my home where I enjoy plein air painting and drawing, time spent with dear friends and family, maple sugaring, and anything outdoors.
Elliot grew up in Vermont and graduated from MassArt in Boston with a BFA in Jewelry and Small Metals. He works with a variety of 2D and 3D mediums, and loves to sing and garden. This will be Elliot’s second summer with Putney Summer Arts.
Jackson Pelz is a musician, songwriter, and chess tutor based in New York City, and is so excited to be returning to Putney for his second year. From Etowah North Carolina, he loves to play/write folk and bluegrass, but also composes soundscores for theater. He’s helped develop work at Theaterab, Bric arts, and the Brick Theater in New York, as well as put up renditions of his musical “Plant ”at BAX and the A.P.E arts gallery in Southampton Massachusett. Other than music, he loves reading sci fi, running (kind of), and to annoy people. His first E.P with the group Saint Howie will be out this summer.
Ella Pena is a live illustrator, exhibiting painter, and educator based in Sarasota, Florida. She began her artistic journey at Putney’s summer program in 2017 and continued her studies at Ringling College of Art and Design. There, she majored in Illustration with dual minors in Graphic Design and Creative Writing.
Ella’s work encompasses a diverse range of styles, from monochromatic portraits with dramatic lighting to whimsical pen and ink drawings and product designs inspired by early 20th-century children’s book illustrations. In addition to her artistic practice, local exhibitions and live portrait work, Ella is committed to fostering young artistic talent, having taught art to students since 2013.
Website
Freya Sachs is a teacher and writer in Nashville, TN. She is chair of the English Department of University School of Nashville, where she teaches high school English and creative writing. Her poems can be found as part of Nashville’s “Poetry In Motion” series, in the anthology Extinguished and Extinct: An Anthology of Things That No Longer Exist, at Rove poetry, and elsewhere. Her fiction reviews can be found at BookPage. She holds an AB in Environmental Studies from Dartmouth College and an MFA in Creative Writing from Vanderbilt University.
Uriel Sandoval is a Mexican-American artist living in Los Angeles. His current art practice is a series of portrait and landscape paintings in oil and watercolor. Uriel has also focused on mixed-media drawings in charcoal and graphite pencils that emphasize the traditional use of shading with contemporary mixed-media newspaper and magazine articles.
Currently, Uriel is teaching at Alliance Piera Barbaglia Shaheen Health Service Academy High School. His art classes have conveyed units in painting, drawing, mixed media, and various other mediums. Uriel obtained a Master’s Degree in Art History in May 2024 from California State University of Los Angeles.
I’m Haleigh (they/she), I’m a recent grad of the University of Connecticut! Legend has it she was found in a wizard’s den in a mountain cavern, swaddled in a Snoopy-print blanket and adorned with the tiniest cowboy hat. I have no intention of sharing my wizard secret. I’m super stoked to be returning to Putney this year, and I can’t wait to see everyone!
I am so excited to return to Putney Summer arts this summer as a dorm head! When I’m not at Putney, I love to visit museums, play with clay, and spend time with friends!
I have been the farm manager at Putney for 27 years. I have also taught history and coached girls basketball during my time here. I enjoy all aspects of farm life, especially animal husbandry and rotational grazing. I enjoy hiking, biking and visiting local swimming holes.
Hello, my name is Charlotte and I’m a rising senior at Oberlin College where I study Sociology and Studio Art. My interests include oil painting, running, and cooking with friends. Born and raised in VT, I have heard great things about the Putney School but never had the pleasure of experiencing it. I am so excited to experience my first summer at Putney and engage with a community centered around art and sustainability.
Maya Villalobos has treasured Summers at Putney since she attended the program as a high school student. This is her third year as a Dorm Head. Born and raised in New York City, she graduated from Bennington College in 2021 with a B.A. in visual arts. She is passionate about supporting creative communities in which people can explore their interests and learn from each other. For the past two years, Maya has worked at a preschool in New York as an assistant teacher. She enjoys painting, collage, folk music, and creating dollhouse-scale miniatures.
Kiersten White’s passion is to be equitable and representational in making impactful and informative visual entertainment. She has directed and produced films independently and with production companies for the last 8 years. The last documentary she produced, “Dennis E. Thomas: Center Stage,” won a 2023 Silver Telly Award. Kiersten’s independently-produced short, “A Differently-Curated World,” won Best Story at the Los Angeles LGBTQ+ Film Festival. “A Differently-Curated World” is currently making the rounds at film festivals. Kiersten is currently in production for a 10-part TV/web series.